FOREX-Dollar rises against yen, euro as nervous investors seek safety

(New throughout; changes dateline, previous LONDON)
By Kate Duguid
NEW YORK, May 11 (Reuters) - The dollar rose on Monday
against the Japanese yen and the euro as investors worried that
economic recovery might be slower than hoped and sought the
safety of the U.S. currency.
Safe-haven appeal boosted the dollar against its major peers
in the New York morning as investors adjusted their risk
expectations with an eye on warnings of a second wave of
COVID-19 infections as more countries eased lockdown
restrictions.
Germany reported on Monday that new coronavirus infections
were accelerating exponentially after early steps to ease its
lockdown, news that sounded a global alarm even as businesses
opened from Paris hair salons to Shanghai Disneyland. South
Korea also saw infections rebound to a one-month high.
Japan said on Monday it could end its state of emergency in
many regions this week and New Zealand said it could ease
restrictions on Thursday. The UK has also set out plans to ease
the lockdown while in France shops re-opened on Monday.
Some risk assets including U.S. stocks were boosted last
week on cautious optimism about an economic recovery, but that
attitude has been hard to maintain, said Joe Manimbo, senior
market analyst at Western Union Business Solutions.
"Sustaining optimism has proven a tough task after last
week's unprecedented U.S. employment report that showed a record
loss of more than 20 million jobs in April which pushed
unemployment to nearly 15%, the highest since the Great
Depression. Expectations that unemployment could top 20% in the
months ahead dampened hopes of a strong recovery over the latter
half of the year, buoying the greenback."
Against a basket of six rival currencies, the dollar was
last up 0.31% at 100.1 =USD . The safe-haven Japanese yen hit a
15-day low versus the dollar, down around 0.82% JPY= , after a
U.S. buyer bought a large amount of dollar-yen, forcing the pair
above 107. The euro fell against the dollar, though had retraced some
of that move mid-morning, last down around 0.19% at $1.082
EUR= .
The dollar this week will take its cues from Federal Reserve
Chair Jerome Powell's speech on Wednesday, and inflation,
jobless and retail spending data, according to Manimbo.
Also weighing on global risk sentiment is the prospect of
worsening tensions between the United States and China.
A conciliatory phone call between U.S. and China trade
negotiators on Friday staved off fears of an imminent new round
of U.S. tariffs. But U.S. President Donald Trump said he was
"very torn" over whether or not to end the preliminary Phase 1
trade deal between the two countries. <^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Dollar IMAGE https://tmsnrt.rs/2WQM13c
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>